The fast oil change and automotive service industry is comprised of a diverse group of automotive professionals and businesses working every day to keep America’s cars running. Every March, we take the time to research, identify and rank the top auto service chains in the nation.
Before we examine the rankings, it is important to first define the terms we use in this report. We classify a “fast lube” facility as any business that derives the majority of its sales from quick, convenient oil changes and other automotive preventive maintenance services that can be done in less than 30 minutes.
We classify shops that have dual profit centers, like a carwash/fast lube, co-branded facilities, tire stores or dealerships with quick service lanes as “lube-plus” shops. Muffler shops, auto repair shops and mass merchant retailers are also classified in this category.
For the purpose of this study, a “chain” is any six or more fast lube facilities owned by the same company/individual/business entity and/or operated under the same or similar signage. For example, a brand like Havoline xpress lube, which is actually comprised of individual owner/operators who have entered into an agreement with Havoline to use xpress lube signage, is grouped together as a chain.
Quite often, we run into independent lube operations that might own six or more of these branded shops. To avoid counting those facilities twice, we group them into a separate listing we call, “Associated Lube Chains.”
Of course, we can’t review the 2017 Tops in the Industry data without thanking Valvoline for sponsoring the survey this year. Without their support, we are limited to what information we can publish in the magazine.
The information we publish was reported to us directly from the companies we contacted or from independent third-party sources we deem reliable. It is believed to be accurate and current as of February 28, 2017, unless otherwise noted.
